Protective Cover on Belly

Boozecamp · Jul 11, 2014

I've got to take down a portion of the plastic liner on the bottom of frame to do an inspection for a minor water leak under mid-section. So i'll be dropping it near wheels. I'm sure that means 3/4's of the liner will have to be dropped.
Has anyone done this, any precautions, suggestions, do's-don'ts?
Not too concerned with taking down, but rather putting back up. Do I need to go buy some special adhesive to re-establish the seal? I assume it needs to be some sort of plyable caulk that will hold but will allow it to come down again some day. I've ruled out Liquid Nails.

JohnDar · Jul 11, 2014

When I've dropped sections of my coroplast, I didn't find any kind of caulk, sealant or adhesive. It's just attached with the self-tapping screws. It may be possible to do your inspection by loosening a section along the side and pulling it down enough to see inside. Others have cut small inspection "ports" into the cover in the area of concern and then sealed them with Gorilla tape. I'd go that route before starting to drop the whole cover.

danemayer · Jul 11, 2014

Boozecamp said:
I've got to take down a portion of the plastic liner on the bottom of frame to do an inspection for a minor water leak under mid-section. So i'll be dropping it near wheels. I'm sure that means 3/4's of the liner will have to be dropped.
Has anyone done this, any precautions, suggestions, do's-don'ts?
Not too concerned with taking down, but rather putting back up. Do I need to go buy some special adhesive to re-establish the seal? I assume it needs to be some sort of plyable caulk that will hold but will allow it to come down again some day. I've ruled out Liquid Nails.

If your Bighorn has a drop frame where the rear section is higher, you can't just drop the rear section. It's tucked in both in front and back. You'll have to cut an inspection port. Cut 3 sides of a rectangle leaving the 4th side as a hinge. I'd suggest orienting the hinge to face the doorside. That way, as you tow, the airflow will be less likely to work it open.

Some people have had success resealing with Gorilla Tape; others not so much. I think it may depend on how new/clean the coroplast is. Another choice is Window and Door Flashing Tape from big box hardware stores.

donr827 · Jul 11, 2014

Do You meant to put the hinge facing the front of the trailer?........Don

cookie · Jul 11, 2014

donr827 said:
Do You meant to put the hinge facing the front of the trailer?........Don

That's what I would do.
Also you could put a 1x2 on the inside of the Coroplast and screw the Coroplast to it to hold it in place followed by the tape over the screws.
Same method used in drywall repairs.

Peace
Dave

danemayer · Jul 11, 2014

donr827 said:
Do You meant to put the hinge facing the front of the trailer?........Don

I orient the hinge to the side in case there's suction created by the airflow. But I don't have any science behind that thought and putting the hinge to the front should be fine. And as Dave mentioned, adding a piece of wood will significantly strengthen the closure.

whp4262 · Jul 11, 2014

I dropped the whole side of the coroplast on my Cyclone when I installed the rear camera cable. It was actually pretty easy to take down and reinstall.

johnpsz · Jul 11, 2014

I dropped mine during the PDI, at least dropped one side so I could inspect things, glad I did since there was a leak in the fresh water fill line that may not have been found during the PDI without really looking. There was no sealant, just screws as mentioned above, and the material is stiff enough that it goes back on easily without fighting it.

Protective Cover on Belly

Boozecamp

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cookie

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